Hunting Regulatory News (HTG)

Hunting PLC

("Hunting" or "the Company" or "the Group")

AGM and Q1 2021 Trading Update

Hunting PLC (LSE:HTG), the international energy services group, issues the following Trading Update for Q1 2021, ahead of its Annual General Meeting that will take place today at 2:30p.m. BST.

Industry sentiment has continued to improve throughout the quarter, as WTI oil prices have strengthened from $49 per barrel at the start of the year to $63 per barrel currently, an increase of 29%.

The Board is closely monitoring industry participants and commentators, which include activity and capital spending projections, and is encouraged that strong upgrades to expectations have been published in recent weeks for Q2 2021 and beyond. It is on this basis that management believes that 2021 will be an improving year for the Company as stability returns to the global oil and gas market.

Trading in Q1 2021 has been broadly in line with management expectations, with a small EBITDA loss being recorded, predominantly driven by subdued offshore drilling activity throughout H2 2020 and into 2021. Activity at the Group's facilities in Texas was also impacted for a week in February 2021, due to the severe weather across the state.

Revenue within Hunting Titan has reported improvement in Q1 2021 compared to Q4 2020, as US onshore activity continues its return to growth. Hunting Titan's March 2021 result was also its best performance since April 2020, when global lockdown measures were implemented.

Revenue within the Group's other operating segments has also stabilised as the WTI oil price has improved. As previously indicated, management believes that most of the Group's segments will see a stronger performance from late Q2 2021 onwards.

The Group's Balance Sheet remains robust with good liquidity, including undrawn core bank borrowing facilities of $160.0 million committed until December 2022, and a cash at bank position of c.$96.1 million at 31 March 2021, compared to $101.7 million at 31 December 2020. Inventory levels continue to reduce and were approximately c.$274.3 million at the end of Q1 2021, compared to $288.4 million at the 2020 year-end.

The final dividend declared for 2020 of 4.0 cents per share is due for payment on 14 May 2021 which will absorb c.$6.5 million.

Commenting on Q1 2021 trading and the market outlook, Hunting's Chief Executive, Jim Johnson said:

"As anticipated, whilst Q1 trading has remained subdued, our Hunting Titan segment reports quarter-on-quarter revenue growth alongside the stabilisation of revenue within our other operating segments. Green shoots of growth across most of our product lines are visible and this, combined with evidence that expectations for industry activity and capital spending continue to be upgraded, supports management's view that Hunting is well positioned for a return to growth in 2021."

"Management actions in 2020 have reduced the Group's cost base, with annualised cost savings of $86.0 million being realised. Our global footprint and strong balance sheet leave the Group well positioned to benefit from the recovery that is expected to continue throughout the balance of the year."

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About Hunting PLC

Hunting PLC is an international energy services provider to the world's leading upstream oil and gas companies. Established in 1874, it is a premium listed public company traded on the London Stock Exchange. The Company maintains a corporate office in Houston and is headquartered in London. As well as the United Kingdom, the Company has operations in Canada, China, Indonesia, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America.

The Group reports in US dollars across four segments: Hunting Titan, US, Europe, Middle East and Africa ("EMEA") and Asia Pacific.

Hunting PLC's Legal Entity Identifier is 2138008S5FL78ITZRN66.